Next year’s 2017 Junior National Premier League season will have a female amongst its coaching ranks. Sixteen-year-old Emma Karamoshos will become the first female to coach in the NPL junior boys’ setup.
Karamoshos has been intrusted with the Under 12 boy’s role at Brunswick City Soccer Club.
“I am incredibly grateful to Brunswick City SC for enabling me to begin my coaching journey in the club’s sub junior set up in 2016.” she says.
“This has assisted me to further my development by having a coaching role in the NPL boys’ structure in 2017.”
Karamoshos is no stranger to football and explains how her family have a rich footballing background, which was a motivating factor in her love for the game.
“My family has had a very long association with football on a variety of levels. My dad has over 20 years playing experience at numerous clubs and my mum played in the first ever Women’s League in Victoria in the 1980s.”
Unfortunately for the 16-year-old, her playing career was cut short to due to a serious knee injury. Although her days as a player were over at such a tender age, Karamoshos believes her involvement in football from as long as she can remember will pay dividends in her journey as a coach.
“Not being able to actively participate in the only way that was truly familiar to me, I still wanted to be involved in football.
“I didn’t have a clear idea of how I was going to do this, but my well-developed knowledge of the game and leadership skills led me to pursue another path into coaching.
“I strive to utilize the knowledge that I have to teach others and in turn, continue learning about the game from those around me.”
Karamoshos is in great hands at Brunswick City and will be under the tutelage of technical director Riccardo Marchioli, who is confident that she is a fantastic fit for Brunswick City’s coaching staff in 2017.
“The major factors that led to her appointment were her displays as a coach in the club’s Miniroos program – her growth, mindset and willingness to learn really impressed us.
“She’s a fantastic cultural fit for our club and coaching family. Neither age nor gender should prohibit any person who is good enough for any job in football or elsewhere.”
“This is a great step in terms of gender equality in football. An appointment such as this displays how clubs within the NPL are appointing coaches based of their knowledge and are avoiding external factors which have tampered with the world game for a very long time.”
Karamoshos was asked how she felt in regards to being the first female coach in the NPL junior boys setup.
”It is refreshing to see the football community embrace gender equality and actively promote the involvement of females on and off the pitch,” she said.
“I am very excited to be able to challenge myself in this new role and continue my coaching development in such dynamic and complex circumstances.
“My appointment in this role absolutely demonstrates the efforts being made in the way of gender equality in football and at Brunswick City specifically, and I hope to see the gap between the number of male and female coaches at both NPL and national level bridged.”
Karamoshos will also be undertaking her AFC C license in January to further enhance her skills and knowledge as a coach. A motivated and focused individual, the 16-year-old also made her ambitions clear.
“Ultimately I would like to continue coaching to the highest level I can reach, and one day I hope to be coaching at a national level.”
“Undertaking my C licence is the first step in my professional development as a coach, and it is only just the beginning of what I would like to achieve.”